PROPOSAL TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA

Project Town Crier: A Joint-Agency Rural Community Radio Communication Network (RCRCN)

Submitted to: The Federal Executive Council, through the Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy

Proposed lead and partner bodies: Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy (incl. NCC); Federal Ministry of Aviation & Aerospace Development (incl. NiMet); National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA); Federal Ministry of Agriculture & Food Security; Federal Ministry of Interior; and other participating ministries

Date: October 2026

Submitted by: Yen Choi / Oswald Guobadia / Radio Society of Nigeria Limtied by Guarantee (in formation)

Version: 0.2

1. Executive Summary

For a farming family, a missed rain warning can mean seed put into dry soil; a pest alert that arrives too late can mean a smaller harvest; and not knowing the market price or when a buyer will come can mean produce sold cheaply or left to spoil. For a family facing a flood, illness or security threat, the same communications gap can delay a request for help. These are not abstract connectivity statistics: they are decisions about food, income, safety and whether help can arrive in time.

Large parts of rural Nigeria have no reliable GSM, 4G/LTE or 5G coverage. Even where a signal is available, the cost of a handset or service can keep people from using it. Communities can therefore remain cut off from weather warnings, agricultural advice and emergency alerts—and agencies can remain unaware of what is happening in the field.

Project Town Crier proposes a practical response: a joint-agency Rural Community Radio Communication Network (RCRCN) of High Frequency (HF) radio Community Communication Hubs, one in each of Nigeria's 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs), with deployment in phases and expansion to wards later. Each hub is a solar-powered two-way HF station run by trained, accredited operators. Hubs link to State Coordination Centres and a national coordination function that can be delivered through primary and backup sites and scheduled agency-operated control stations.

The RCRCN:

• Broadcasts official weather, early-warning, agricultural and public-safety information to every LGA, independent of mobile networks, fibre and the internet.
• Relays voice and text (including digital data modes) from communities to the responsible agencies.
• Provides a communications path when mobile service is unavailable—whether because of natural disasters, sabotage, vandalism, equipment or power failure, backhaul outages, or network congestion.
• Does not rely on cellular towers, fibre, internet or commercial backhaul. Its HF links use radio propagation directly between stations, supported by each hub's own radio equipment, antenna and power system.
• Is designed to avoid any one LGA hub becoming a single point of failure. A town with an unavailable hub should not prevent neighbouring towns from communicating with one another or reaching the wider network, provided they have functioning stations and alternate HF paths are available.
• Uses mature, proven technology from aviation, maritime, humanitarian and amateur radio, with a national range and no recurring airtime fees.
• Keeps spending in Nigeria, in contrast to the foreign-currency outflow of subscription satellite services.
• Gives the country a resilient backup network when mobile networks or their supporting infrastructure fail.

Why “Town Crier”?

Long before mobile phones, radio or the internet, communities across Nigeria and many other parts of the world relied on town criers to carry important news from local leaders to the people. For generations—and, in many communities, over centuries—the crier moved through the settlement, often using a bell, drum or other familiar signal to gather attention, then announced information in a language people understood. The practice was not simply a way to make noise: it connected a recognised local messenger with a community that needed to hear and act on shared information.

The method works because it is direct, familiar and adapted to local life. People know how to recognise the signal, where to listen, and how to pass a message on to neighbours who may not have heard it the first time. When announcements are timely, clear and delivered by a trusted person, a town crier can quickly reach people who may be missed by written notices or individual phone calls. Its effectiveness depends on the messenger's credibility, accurate information, suitable timing and the ability to reach the whole community; it is not a substitute for a reliable way to obtain and verify information or to report back.

Project Town Crier builds on that enduring community practice. It connects local operators and public announcements to an HF network that can carry verified warnings, advice and community reports between LGAs and responsible agencies—even where mobile coverage is absent. The radio network extends the reach and speed of the familiar town-crier role; local operators can then share the message in the language and forms their communities use and trust. It is an investment in a modern communications system built around a principle that has served communities for generations: important information must reach people where they are, in a form they can understand and act on.

Why this solution, why now?

Yen and Oswald have been friends for a long time and share a bias for execution. Their experience has shown them how gaps in implementation and funding leave an urgent problem unresolved: people and institutions often cannot exchange the basic information needed to protect lives and livelihoods. Many available connectivity solutions are too costly to extend sustainably to every underserved community.

GSMA research distinguishes mobile coverage from mobile use: a network may reach an area while people remain offline because handsets, data or service are unaffordable. Coverage alone does not guarantee that a farmer can receive an advisory, that a health worker can be contacted, or that a community can report an emergency. Project Town Crier is designed to close part of that practical access gap with a shared, low-cost channel for short, useful information.

Project Town Crier is a right-sized solution for the needs and resources of this stage of Africa's development. It does not dismiss broadband or newer technologies; it makes sure that the basics are not postponed while waiting for every community to leap directly to high-bandwidth access. A forecast that reaches a farmer in time, a verified alert that reaches a community, or a report that reaches the agency able to respond can make a decisive difference to harvests, health and security.

This is a practical radio solution to a basic communications need: the information must reach people where they are, in a form they can use.

Promoters and delivery capability

Project Town Crier is promoted by Yen Choi and Oswald Guobadia, whose experience brings together two capabilities the initiative needs: practical telecommunications and radio expertise, and experience translating digital policy into coordinated public- and private-sector action.

Yen Choi brings more than 23 years of living and working in Nigeria, alongside deep experience in telecommunications technologies and service delivery. In his own account, he has travelled extensively across the country and explored more than 100 Nigerian cities—firsthand experience that informs his understanding of the distance, infrastructure gaps and local realities communities face. Public profiles identify him as a senior technology executive at Netcom Africa, and his amateur-radio profile records his current Nigerian callsign, 5N0YEN, as well as his earlier Canadian callsign, VE7YCZ.

Yen also brings direct experience at the intersection of agriculture and communications. As a board member of Ignitia.ai, a company focused on hyperlocal weather forecasting for agriculture, he has been involved with technology intended to give farmers more locally relevant weather information. Ignitia’s work with the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) includes collaboration on AI applications for weather forecasting and more useful agricultural advisories. For more than 15 years, Yen has also served as a lead judge for agriculture, entrepreneurship and social-responsibility competitions, including AYuTe and Enactus, engaging with ideas and ventures aimed at improving livelihoods.

His wider experience spans the governance of Nigeria’s not-for-profit Internet Exchange Point, microfinance banking, internet and satellite communications, date centres, private equity, software development and artificial intelligence. This breadth is relevant to Project Town Crier: the network must connect communities, agencies, farmers and service providers, while being technically sound, locally useful and sustainable.

Oswald Guobadia brings experience in digital transformation, infrastructure and government delivery. He served as Senior Special Assistant to the President of Nigeria on Digital Transformation and was Project Lead for the Nigeria Startup Act; he also co-founded DBH Solutions, an African infrastructure and technology company, and has worked in policy and execution advisory. These roles demonstrate experience convening stakeholders and moving a complex initiative from design toward implementation.

Together, the promoters are a strong fit for the work ahead: Yen contributes telecommunications engineering, radio practice and long-term familiarity with Nigeria’s communities; Oswald contributes public-sector coordination, policy execution and cross-sector leadership. The challenge is not simply to specify equipment—it is to build a service people will use, agencies will support and local teams can maintain. Their complementary experience provides a credible foundation for leading that work, while the phased pilot, independent evaluation and shared agency governance will be essential to demonstrating and sustaining success.

Selected public profiles: Yen Choi, Netcom Africa interview; 5N0YEN amateur-radio profile; NiMet–Ignitia collaboration on AI weather forecasting; Oswald Guobadia, Ibom Innovation Network; Oswald Guobadia, TechCabal.

2. Problem Statement

2.1 Critical information needs

Rural communities need:

• Inbound: weather forecasts, seasonal outlooks, flood and drought warnings, planting calendars, pest and disease alerts, market and extension advice, and public-safety notices.
• Outbound: emergency reports (flood, drought, fire, epidemics, accidents, displacement, security incidents), and field data on rainfall, crop condition and damage.

Without this two-way flow, agencies respond late, farmers lose crops and livelihoods, and lives are put at risk.

2.2 What the connectivity gap looks like in everyday life

The following illustrative scenarios show how unreliable connectivity can affect people in different parts of rural life. They are not accounts of specific documented incidents.

1. When every minute matters: After heavy rain, a stream begins to rise near Amina's village. Her family can see the water coming, but there is no mobile signal to reach emergency services or warn relatives downstream. Someone has to travel to find a working phone, losing precious time. A dependable community radio link could carry the first report to the relevant emergency centre and bring back an official warning.

1. A farmer left to guess: Musa has borrowed money to buy seed and prepared his field with his family. The rains have been erratic; nearby farmers are reporting pests, but Musa cannot reliably receive a local forecast or ask an extension officer what to do. He must choose whether to plant now, wait, or spend scarce money on treatment based on rumour. Later, when the crop is ready, he may still have no dependable way to compare prices, tell buyers when the harvest will be ready, or arrange transport before produce loses value. One missed advisory or delayed connection can narrow the choices his family has worked all season to create. A regular channel for trusted forecasts, practical extension advice, pest reports and market information cannot remove every farming risk, but it can help Musa make better-informed decisions—and help agencies and buyers understand what farmers need and when.

1. A health emergency far from help: When a pregnant woman in a remote settlement goes into labour with worrying complications, her family needs to contact a health worker and arrange transport to a clinic. With no signal, they may have to send someone on foot or by vehicle to find help. That delay adds fear and risk at the moment when clear advice and a timely referral matter most.

1. A community unable to report danger: Residents notice a security threat nearby and want to alert the authorities and warn neighbouring settlements. With patchy or absent service, reports may be delayed, fragmented, or passed along as rumour. A trusted, two-way channel would help a trained local operator relay a concise report and receive guidance without relying on a personal phone having a signal.

1. A small trader cut off from the market: Hauwa gathers produce to sell at the nearest market, but cannot reliably check prices, confirm whether a buyer is coming, or contact a transporter when plans change. She may make a costly journey for a weak price, or watch perishable goods lose value while she waits. Better communication can help rural traders make informed decisions and keep more of their earnings.

These are different moments in different lives, but the barrier is shared: people have information agencies need, and agencies have information people need, yet there is no dependable, affordable path between them. Project Town Crier is designed to create that path—not to solve every rural challenge by itself, but to help timely advice, reports and warnings reach the people who can use them.

3. Proposed Solution

3.1 Concept

Each LGA gets a Community Communication Hub (CCH): a permanent HF radio station, preferably at an existing public facility such as the LGA secretariat, a primary health centre, an agricultural extension office, a police division or a school, with at least one trained operator.

HF radio (3–30 MHz) is refracted by the ionosphere and can cover hundreds to thousands of kilometres without any intermediate infrastructure. Nigeria can therefore be covered with no towers, no fibre and no subscription. The technology is mature and widely used in:

• aviation (oceanic and remote-area communication),
• maritime and marine safety,
• humanitarian and disaster response (UN, Red Cross, military, and NGOs),
• amateur radio (long-established emergency communication services).

3.2 Network architecture

Communication modes:

• Scheduled national broadcasts (nets): daily weather and advisory bulletins, in English, Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo and other major local languages.
• Voice relay (SSB): on-demand two-way voice between hubs, state centres and the NNCC.
• Digital text and data modes: low-bandwidth messaging, forms, and short reports (e.g., ALE, VARA HF, Winlink-type email-over-radio, JS8-style keyboard messaging), with error correction. Treat transmissions as open and unencrypted; authentication can help verify the sender but does not provide confidentiality.
• Digital information services: a text-first RCRCN website or bulletin board where agencies can publish notices, advisories and bulletins for LGA hubs to retrieve over scheduled HF data sessions. Hubs can also submit short text updates for central posting.
• Store-and-forward HF email: LGA messages are held in mailboxes at the NNCC or a designated, backed-up service site until the intended station checks in and retrieves them. Replies are likewise held for collection, so sender and recipient do not need to be online at the same time. This service is for non-confidential messages.
• AI-assisted text chat: an LGA operator can send a question by digital message to an LLM service hosted or accessed at the NNCC and receive a text response on a later radio session. The service can be grounded in approved Nigerian and local information, with clear limits and human oversight; it is an information aid, not a substitute for emergency services or professional medical advice.
• Agency-operated control stations: participating agencies may install their own HF transceivers and, subject to channel plans and operating procedures, monitor shared network channels or run scheduled nets with their trained operators. Control and coordination need not be performed by one permanently centralised station; designated agencies and coordination centres can take scheduled control slots, with agreed handover, message logging and emergency escalation procedures.
• Emergency nets: priority traffic, with a dedicated emergency frequency and protocols.
• Gateways: at NNCC and SCCs, messages are passed to and from email, SMS and agency systems, so that rural messages enter normal government workflows.

HF links do not require cellular towers, microwave backhaul, fibre, internet or a mobile operator's backhaul; stations communicate directly by radio. This makes the RCRCN a practical alternative when mobile reception is absent or disrupted by a natural disaster, sabotage, vandalism, equipment or power failure, backhaul failure, or network capacity constraints. The network should provide multiple direct and relayed HF paths so that no single town or LGA hub is a required transit point. If one town's hub is unavailable, neighbouring towns with working stations can continue to communicate with one another and reach the wider network over alternate paths, subject to radio coverage, channel availability and operating procedures. This design can remove individual hubs and terrestrial backhaul links as single points of failure, but it does not make the service immune to every outage: each site relies on functioning radio equipment, antenna and power, and HF links can be affected by propagation conditions or interference. Central services such as message storage and gateways also need redundancy to avoid becoming single points of failure.

Digital services and store-and-forward operation

Beyond voice, the RCRCN can provide a low-bandwidth, text-first information layer. Agencies can post notices and bulletins to a central RCRCN website or message board; LGA hubs retrieve and locally display or print them during scheduled HF data sessions. Hubs can also submit short reports or messages for central posting. This is not general-purpose web browsing: content should be concise, prioritised and formatted for reliable transfer over a constrained radio link.

The NNCC or a designated, backed-up service site can operate as a store-and-forward mailbox. An LGA can send HF email to a recipient whose station is temporarily offline; the service stores the message and delivers it when that station next connects. Replies can be collected in the same way. Thus, sender and recipient do not need to be online simultaneously, and a temporarily unavailable receiving site does not prevent the message from being queued. The mailbox service itself depends on its host equipment and power, so the design should include redundant storage, backup power and recovery procedures. Messages sent through this system must be treated as open and non-confidential.

The same messaging pathway can support text-based interaction with an LLM service hosted or accessed at an NNCC or designated agency control station. An operator submits a non-sensitive question, and the answer is returned when the next HF session allows. For local usefulness, the service should prioritize approved Nigerian and state-level sources, indicate uncertainty, protect messages while stored at the service, and route urgent health, safety or security matters to the appropriate human agency rather than presenting AI output as authoritative advice. AI access requires the host station to have the necessary computing resources and, where the model is accessed remotely, a working connection to that service; the LGA-to-host radio path itself does not require internet connectivity. No confidential or personally identifying information should be included in a question sent over open radio.

Agency participation and open communications

Agencies can equip their own control or monitoring stations to listen to scheduled shared-channel traffic and communicate with LGA hubs or other control stations, subject to licensing, spectrum allocation and network procedures. The network can use a distributed operating model: agencies may take scheduled control slots using their own trained operators, while the national coordination function maintains common schedules, routing, logging standards and escalation arrangements. This provides multiple points of coordination rather than making one central control room the only point of contact.

Unless an explicitly authorised and lawful secure method is separately provided, RCRCN voice and digital traffic must be treated as open and unencrypted: other suitably equipped stations may be able to receive it. Authentication, call signs and message logs can help establish who sent a message, but they do not make it confidential. Operators must not transmit personal, classified, commercially sensitive or otherwise confidential information over these channels. Use an approved secure communications system for such information.

3.3 Typical CCH technical specification (per LGA)

Design principles: standards-based, modular equipment that is locally maintainable and interoperable with existing aviation, military, NEMA and amateur HF assets, and uses a mix of frequency bands (e.g., 3–5 MHz at night/short range, 7–14 MHz for day/long range) to keep links reliable across day, night and season. Equipment specifications should use open, published interfaces and recognised standards wherever practical, with conformance and interoperability testing. Transceivers, antennas, computers and other components can then be procured from different qualified vendors and OEMs as brands and technologies change, without requiring a wholesale network replacement. This supports a resilient, adaptable infrastructure over its service life.

3.3.1 Spectrum

NCC, as the spectrum regulator, would allocate and license a dedicated set of HF channels for the RCRCN in coordination with the Nigerian Armed Forces, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), and the NCAA, so as to prevent interference with aeronautical and military services. The official network should run on government-assigned channels. If amateur radio spectrum is used for any permitted volunteer support, every transmitting operator must be trained and hold the applicable amateur radio licence under the MCIDE/NCC regulatory framework. Amateur spectrum must be used only in accordance with amateur-service rules, including their non-commercial-use restrictions; government or agency traffic that is not permitted on amateur frequencies must use appropriately assigned channels. All amateur-band traffic should be treated as open and non-confidential.

3.4 Operators and training

• Operators: one primary operator and at least one alternate per hub (minimum 2 per LGA, ~1,500+ people nationally). Sources: LGA staff, agricultural extension agents, health workers, NYSC members, community volunteers, and licensed amateur radio operators (hams).
• Training: a national curriculum, delivered by NCC, NiMet, NEMA and the amateur radio community: radio fundamentals, antenna and solar maintenance, net discipline and message handling, emergency communications procedures, weather and agricultural message handling, digital modes, open-channel privacy rules, and basic first-response awareness.
• Certification: operators trained and certified under MCIDE/NCC standards, with applicable spectrum and station licences; anyone transmitting on amateur spectrum must also hold the required individual amateur licence. Annual refresher training and periodic national exercises are recommended.
• Community role: operators read bulletins over local loudspeaker/FM or village meetings, post notices, and collect reports. Hub operators should be given a modest stipend or incentive.

3.5 Operations concept

1. Daily schedule: morning and evening net. Typical times: 06:30 national weather/agri bulletin; 18:00 community report net.
2. Seasonal bulletins: onset-of-rain and cessation forecasts, flood outlooks, harmattan and dry-spell advisories.
3. Emergency activation: any hub can call an emergency; NNCC/SCC acknowledges, logs, and notifies the responsible agency (NEMA/SEMA, police, health, etc.).
4. Reporting loop: hubs send daily or weekly data (rainfall, river levels, crop status, pest sightings), feeding national early-warning and agricultural statistics.
5. Digital information and messaging: scheduled HF data sessions synchronise bulletin-board content and transfer queued messages; hubs can collect mail and notices when they next connect.
6. Agency control slots: agencies may schedule their own licensed control stations and trained operators to monitor or run network sessions, following shared channel plans, net procedures and handover protocols.
7. AI-assisted information: where enabled, questions and text responses are queued through an NNCC or designated agency service and transferred during HF sessions, with clear priority rules so this traffic does not displace emergency messages.
8. Quality and security: logging of all messages, message formats and source authentication, regular performance monitoring, and clear instructions that open radio traffic is not for confidential information.

4. Governance and Responsibilities

4.1 Structure

• Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee (IMSC): chaired by the Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, with ministerial or permanent secretary representation from all partners. Provides policy direction, budget oversight and annual review.
• Programme Management Office (PMO): a small, full-time secretariat (hosted by the Ministry of Communications / NCC) responsible for delivery, procurement, reporting and coordination.
• Technical Working Group (TWG): engineers and operators from NCC, NiMet, NEMA, NAMA/NCAA, the Armed Forces (as advisers) and NARS/amateur radio community, for standards, frequency plans, training content and acceptance testing.
• State and LGA liaison: Governors, SEMAs and LGA Chairmen host stations, provide sites, security and local support through a signed MoU.

4.2 Roles and responsibilities

5. Benefits to Stakeholders

The RCRCN is designed to carry information in both directions. Farmers and communities can receive practical, timely advice; they can also report what they see in the field. Agencies can then target warnings and services more precisely, while supply-chain partners can plan collection, storage, transport and equipment deployment. The people who benefit differ by report, but together the reports can help build a more current picture of needs across the country.

A shared picture of needs and conditions

RCRCN reports can help authorized agencies and participating partners build a more current picture of conditions across the country: where crops are healthy or under stress; where pests, fertilizer or crop-protection support are being reported; expected harvest volumes, dates and quality; local weather and flood conditions; health alerts; and reported security, displacement or disaster events. The value is in helping decision-makers identify who needs support and where, and in directing public services and resources accordingly. Reports should be time-stamped, location-referenced, validated with the responsible agency where practicable, and interpreted alongside other information rather than treated as automatically verified facts.

The network should distinguish between information suitable for broad public bulletins and restricted operational reporting. Because routine HF traffic is open and unencrypted, exact identities, sensitive security details, personal health information and other confidential data must not be transmitted over shared channels. Publicly distributed maps should aggregate or omit sensitive details, and access to any more detailed records must follow applicable data-protection and agency procedures.

6. Comparison with Existing Technologies

Existing technologies each play an important role in connecting people and institutions. The RCRCN is designed to complement them, extending two-way communications and public information into areas where terrestrial coverage is unavailable or where infrastructure-based services are disrupted.

Resilience through independent paths

Commercial mobile networks generally depend on a chain of infrastructure: a working handset connects to a nearby base station, and that site must have power and a functioning backhaul connection to the wider network. Backhaul may use microwave radio, fibre or other links. A failure in a tower, its power supply, a backhaul link or a shared upstream facility can therefore interrupt service to the areas that depend on it.

The RCRCN is designed differently. Each LGA hub can communicate by HF radio directly with other stations within reach, or relay messages through more than one available hub or coordination station. Its operation does not require a connected chain of mobile towers, microwave links or fibre routes. Consequently, a town whose hub is damaged, vandalised or temporarily out of service should not isolate neighbouring towns: those towns can continue communicating over their own radio links and route around the unavailable site. Achieving this resilience requires redundant routing, suitable channel plans, backup coordination arrangements and regular outage exercises; it is a design objective, not an automatic guarantee against radio, power, equipment or widespread regional failures.

Lessons from rural mobile-tower deployment

Rural mobile infrastructure can be difficult and expensive to sustain where sites are remote or security conditions are poor. The MTN Rural Telephony project is an example cited in the context of this proposal: deployment and continued operation were reportedly disrupted by bandit activity. Backup batteries were stolen, technicians could be many days away, and unfamiliar or insecure terrain made it difficult to assess and carry out repairs. These conditions reportedly made implementation and maintenance extremely expensive.

This experience should be documented and validated with the relevant operators and public agencies during programme design. It highlights that rural connectivity is not only a question of installing equipment: security, access, power, repair logistics and recurring maintenance determine whether a service remains available. HF hubs also require protection and maintenance, but they do not depend on a tower chain, fibre route or commercial backhaul; local operators can be trained for first-line support, with regional repair assistance for more complex faults.

The RCRCN does not compete with mobile, fibre or satellite services. It serves communities they do not reliably reach and provides a complementary path when those services are unavailable or overloaded. Where future connectivity arrives, hubs can use internet or other gateways as additional backhaul without making them essential to HF communication.

7. Implementation Plan

Deployment will proceed in phases and in cohorts of LGAs, rather than attempting to equip all 774 LGAs at once. The pilot will test coverage, operating procedures, costs, security and community adoption; lessons from each deployment wave will inform the next. Rollout order should be set using transparent criteria such as coverage gaps, population need, disaster exposure, security considerations, readiness of host sites and availability of trained operators.

8. Budget and Funding (Indicative)

A detailed costing will be completed in Phase 0. The purpose of this investment is not simply to purchase radios: it is to establish a working public-service channel, train local operators, connect agency information to communities, and maintain the service over time. A phased pilot allows funders and participating governments to verify coverage, costs, local use and response outcomes before committing to each subsequent rollout cohort.

The cost elements are:

1. Capital: 774 LGA hubs (preliminary estimate of about ₦30 million each); 37 state/FCT centres; national control centre and backup; antennas, solar and batteries; initial spares; vehicles/mobile kits.
2. Training: initial and refresher training of operators; training of trainers.
3. Operations: operator stipends or allowances; preventive maintenance and technical assistance; repair labour, travel and replacement parts; local technician training and cost-recovery support arrangements; power consumables; content production; monitoring and evaluation.
4. Programme management: a national Programme Management Office (PMO), state and zonal coordination, technical and financial oversight, procurement and logistics, monitoring and evaluation, reporting, audit, and rollout coordination across deployment waves.

Deployment and funding will be phased by cohorts of LGAs, with capital released against approved rollout plans and verified delivery milestones. Each participating LGA should ideally make a modest, defined contribution toward its hub or local operating arrangements, alongside federal, state and partner funding. A contribution can strengthen local ownership and give the LGA a stake in using, maintaining and safeguarding the equipment. The amount and form—cash, secure site, staff time, local maintenance or another agreed contribution—should be set during detailed costing and MoU development. Contributions must be affordable and should not exclude high-need or low-resource LGAs; an exemption or counterpart-funding mechanism should be available where an LGA cannot contribute.

Illustrative order of magnitude: at approximately ₦30 million (about USD 22,200 at ₦1,350/USD) per LGA hub, 774 hubs would cost roughly ₦23.2 billion (about USD 17.2 million) for LGA stations alone. This is a preliminary planning estimate, not a procurement quote; a detailed technical costing study should confirm the equipment specification, installation, logistics, taxes and exchange-rate assumptions. State and national centres, training, operations and programme costs are additional.

Ongoing operational costs

For initial planning, the following indicative annual ranges are proposed. They are estimates, not validated budget quotations, and should be tested against pilot operating data, local salary and travel costs, service-level expectations and procurement prices.

The subtotal excludes operating costs for the State/Zonal Coordination Centres and national backup facilities, major equipment replacement, expansion to ward or mobile stations, and any exceptional security or disaster-response costs. These should be separately costed in Phase 0 and the pilot. Cost-recovery income from local technical support is not deducted from the estimates.

Annual operating budgets should provide for scheduled inspection and preventive maintenance, technical assistance, travel to remote sites, replacement parts, and repairs for equipment damaged by weather, wear, accidents or vandalism. Actual costs will vary by site and should be established during the pilot and reflected in service-level plans and agency/LGA budgets.

A subset of LGA operators can receive additional training to provide basic first-line support, such as equipment checks, connector and cable replacement, antenna inspection, and fault reporting. More complex repairs should be referred to regional technicians or approved service providers. A transparent cost-recovery arrangement can cover labour, travel and parts while creating paid technical work, building practical skills in underserved rural areas, and providing additional income to local technicians. The programme should establish funding or waivers for essential repairs so that inability to pay does not leave an LGA without emergency communications.

Potential funding sources:

• Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF)
• Federal budget allocations from partner ministries and agencies (NEMA, NiMet, Agriculture)
• Climate adaptation and disaster risk reduction funds
• Development partners and multilateral institutions (World Bank, AfDB, UN agencies, etc.)
• State and local government counterpart contributions
• Private sector CSR and local manufacturing partnerships

9. Sustainability

• Low recurring costs: no airtime or subscription fees; solar power; simple, robust equipment.
• Standards-based, modular equipment with documented interfaces and interoperability testing; qualified transceivers, antennas, computers and other components can be sourced from different vendors and OEMs as products and technology evolve.
• Ongoing operational costs should be budgeted for preventive maintenance, technical assistance, diagnostics, transport, replacement parts and repair of equipment damaged by weather, wear, accidents or vandalism.
• Train a subset of LGA operators as local first-line technical support providers. They can perform basic checks and repairs, with more complex work escalated to regional technicians or approved service providers. A cost-recovery service model—using transparent, reasonable fees for labour, travel and parts—can help keep sites maintained, build technical capacity in underserved rural areas and provide additional income to trained local technicians. Essential network availability and emergency support should not depend on an operator's ability to pay an unaffordable fee.
• Operators embedded in existing public posts (extension, health, LGA staff) and supported by volunteers.
• Shared ownership across ministries, so that no single budget carries the entire running cost.
• Regular exercises and performance reporting, keeping the system active and trusted.

10. Limitations

10.1 Shared voice capacity

The RCRCN is intended for low-volume, high-value voice communication, not continuous conversation by every LGA. A national network will have only a few designated HF voice channels shared by many stations, so operators must follow scheduled nets, keep calls concise, and give emergency traffic priority. It cannot provide the simultaneous calling capacity of a mobile network.

10.2 Low data rates

Digital exchange is possible, but practical HF data rates are typically below 1–2 kbps and vary with radio conditions, equipment and mode. This is suitable for short text messages, notices, bulletins and basic forms—information that can be read at roughly conversational pace—but not for fast file transfer, video, rich web browsing or broadband internet. The text-first services described in this proposal must therefore be concise, queued and prioritised.

10.3 HF coverage is not assured

HF propagation depends on atmospheric and changing radio-frequency conditions, including time of day, frequency, interference and ionospheric conditions. A direct station-to-station path may not always be available: for example, Abuja may not hear Gombe at a particular time while Lagos can hear Gombe. In that situation, a trained Lagos operator can relay the message onward to Abuja when a suitable link is available. The network must plan multiple frequencies, scheduled check-ins and authorised relay procedures; no individual HF contact should be treated as guaranteed or instantaneous.

10.4 Complement, not replacement

The RCRCN is not intended to replace 4G/LTE/5G, fibre, satellite internet or other high-bandwidth communications. Those services remain essential for broadband, high-volume data and ordinary mobile use where available. The RCRCN complements them by extending basic voice, short messages and public information to communities that lack reliable coverage, and by providing an independent fallback path during outages.

10.5 Equipment security and local custody

Each station requires working equipment and can still be subject to theft, damage or vandalism. Locating it in a secure, staffed house or other community facility and assigning a trained local operator/custodian should make it less exposed than an isolated outdoor mobile base station in a remote area, but this does not eliminate risk. Site selection, secure mounting, community oversight, inventory control and a repair plan remain necessary.

10.6 Non-commercial, non-political and non-religious use

The RCRCN is a public-service communications network, not a platform for commercial promotion, political campaigning or religious advocacy. No corporate advertising, commercial sales messages, partisan political messages, or religious messages or proselytising should be carried. This keeps the service focused on practical public information and helps maintain trust across communities.

These restrictions are especially important whenever amateur radio frequencies are used: all traffic must comply with applicable amateur-service regulations, including restrictions on commercial use. Official, factual public-service notices from participating agencies are distinct from advertising or advocacy, but the spectrum, licensing and content rules for each channel must be confirmed with the regulator before operation. Content policy and operator training should make these limits explicit.

11. Risks and Mitigation

12. Performance Indicators

• Number of LGAs with an operational, certified hub (target: 774)
• Network availability and message delivery success rate
• Time from NiMet/NEMA warning issue to community reception
• Number of operators trained and certified
• Emergency reports received and responded to; response time
• Number of agricultural advisories delivered; farmer reach (survey)
• Bulletin retrieval and message delivery success rates, mailbox queue times, and use of optional AI-assisted messaging
• Reduction in flood and drought losses in participating communities (evaluation)
• Foreign exchange saved versus satellite alternatives

13. Request to the Federal Government

The Federal Government is respectfully requested to:

1. Approve Project Town Crier as a joint multi-agency initiative to establish the Rural Community Radio Communication Network.
2. Constitute an Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee, led by the Ministry of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, with the participation of NCC, Ministry of Aviation/NiMet, NEMA, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Interior and other relevant bodies.
3. Direct NCC to designate and license HF spectrum and to approve technical and operator standards for the RCRCN.
4. Authorise a Programme Management Office and a funded Phase 0–2 (design, costing and pilot).
5. Direct partner agencies to make available weather, emergency and agricultural content and staff for the network.
6. Encourage State Governments and LGAs to sign MoUs and provide hub sites and support.

14. Conclusion

When a farmer must decide whether to plant, treat a crop or wait for rain, useful information has value only if it arrives in time. When a flood rises, a health emergency begins or a community needs to report danger, a way to call for help matters. Project Town Crier gives agencies and communities a practical shared channel to exchange that information, including where mobile service is absent or unaffordable.

The RCRCN is not a substitute for broadband or for the services of agriculture, health, emergency and security agencies. It is a way to help those services reach further—and to help them hear earlier from the people they serve. A phased rollout, shared agency participation, local custodianship and transparent evaluation can keep the investment focused on the places with greatest need and show what works before expansion.

We invite the Federal Government, State Governments, participating agencies, development partners and responsible private-sector partners to fund and support the design and pilot phases, agree clear roles and measures of success, and build the network step by step. The aim is simple and urgent: no community should be left without a voice to report a need or a way to receive a warning.

Annex A: Suggested Memorandum of Understanding Elements

Purpose and scope; roles of each party; funding contributions; content-sharing and data-sharing terms; operating procedures; confidentiality; dispute resolution; review period.

Annex B: Sample Weekly Data and Bulletin Schedule at an LGA Hub

The schedule below is illustrative. State and national centres should coordinate timings, channel allocation and message formats with participating agencies. Hubs can receive bulletins, submit concise local reports, and retrieve queued messages during the relevant sessions. Urgent emergency traffic takes priority at any time and should not wait for the weekly schedule. Reports should be timestamped and location-referenced; routine HF traffic is open and must not include confidential or personally identifying information.

Annex C: Glossary

HF High Frequency (3–30 MHz)

NVIS Near Vertical Incidence Skywave

ALE Automatic Link Establishment

SSB Single Sideband

LGA Local Government Area

SEMA State Emergency Management Agency

USPF Universal Service Provision Fund

MNO Mobile Network Operator

NiMet Nigerian Meteorological Agency

NAMA Nigerian Airspace Management Agency

NCAA Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority